Browsing through this mornings headlines I came across two not so sexy names that would be in my opinion perfect additions to the 2013 Mets while albeit possibly not in starter roles.
The first one is
Jason Bourgeois Elects Free Agency
Bourgeois is a 30 year old career AAAA player with tons of speed who also bats RH and plays solid defense. So why should the Mets be interested? Because he as a 4th OF can provide at least what Torres is supposed to provide at a much cheaper price and as a RH can actually pair up with Kirk in CF at least providing some speed and defense to the team. Jason over the last two years has a line of:
| .287 | .318 | .350 | .668 |
while stealing 36 bases in 318 PA.
During that same span, Andres Torres has a line of:
| .226 | .320 | .334 | .654 |
while stealing 32 bases in 832 PA.
We all know that Torres sucks. However, one of the things that was always brought up was his ability to hit LH pitching which made him a decent partner for Kirk or DD if he is in the mix. Bourgeois also uh… excels in that area:
| .315 | .359 | .396 | .754 |
Combine all this with the fact that Jason is also going to be very cheap and most likely will consider a minor league deal and can still be offered 2nd year arbitration following 2013 it seems like he would be a perfect fit for the Mets OF. I know it’s low budget but moves like those can make a huge difference. For those campaigning for Peter Bourjos here’s his 2012 slash line:
| .220 | .291 | .315 | .606 |
Next in line is a former star: Geovany Soto
Catching Rumors: Pierzynski, Martin, Soto
Soto had an absolute horrible year last year and was brought to Texas for the stretch drive and plummeted even more. Over the last two years Soto has produced:
| .215 | .293 | .381 | .674 |
What brings that line into complete question is prior to those two years Soto was seen as a rising start producing:
| .268 | .360 | .470 | .831 |
Geovany could be the perfect low-risk high reward candidate to pair with Josh Thole. The RH still provides great pop hitting 11 HR out of only 64 hits in 324 PA last year and his numbers while still well below career average were much better vs LH. Soto is still only 29 years old and could come at a cheap price after being non-tendered. In fact it could be worth exploring to see if the Rangers would trade him to the Mets along with some cash for a PTBNL.
Again, I know these two names are not going to slot the Mets into playoff contention but there are a lot of holes to fill and with a limited budget these two could come in handy allowing the Mets to spend the bulk of their money on a RH RF.
Thoughts?
27 comments
Stickguy
11/13/2012-12:24pm at 12:24 pm (UTC -4)
you dumpster diver!
Never heard of the OF, but he certainly looks like the type of 4th OF they could use in the mix.
and Soto is available? I wanted him last time he was. And yes, I would still love to roll the dice on him. If he rediscovers anything, it will be a huge help.
and sadly, even at his 2011-12 numbers, he is still a vast upgrade! and pretty good behind the plate, right?
Prismo
11/13/2012-12:36pm at 12:36 pm (UTC -4)
Good post TRS. If the Mets can even give Bourgeois a $1MM deal instead of giving Torres a $2.5MM deal, it’s worth it. Honestly, Torres is mostly useless. His defense wasn’t even that good last year.
As for Soto, who knows. I guess if the price is right? Again, it’ll be hard to *downgrade* from our offense at the position last season.
Stick
11/13/2012-1:39pm at 1:39 pm (UTC -4)
torres is lousy overall. I find it hard to believe they can’t find someone to do what he does in the minors or FA invite pile.
besides, why spend more to bring back a guy you know the fans hate, when you should be able to find an alternate that is as good or better? Not that I think they should make decisions to pander to the fans (hint, DW, hint), but if there are options, certainly something you can factor in.
TX
11/13/2012-12:48pm at 12:48 pm (UTC -4)
He was a Houston guy that they dumped for catching help, i believe. His claim to fame is he was a local TX player playing on Houston. Some pop, but generally nothing to be impressed with. I’d prefer him over torres, just for the salary factor, but he’s more of a 5th OF type in my mind.
Soto’s decline is kinda scary. I guess it’s better than what we currently have, but that isn’t saying much.
TRS86
11/13/2012-12:51pm at 12:51 pm (UTC -4)
I don’t get caught up in 4th OF or 5th OF. I guess you are right but I see him as a perfect partner for Kirk and cheap to boot.
TRS86
11/13/2012-1:05pm at 1:05 pm (UTC -4)
To further that point, basically I want Jason to take Torres spot.
Q-Rod
11/13/2012-3:03pm at 3:03 pm (UTC -4)
Great post.
Stick
11/13/2012-1:42pm at 1:42 pm (UTC -4)
I agree that the guy for this role needs to serve as a viable platoon partner. Not being able to hit RHP all that well is not that big of a deal right now for this team.
darknova306
11/13/2012-1:39pm at 1:39 pm (UTC -4)
I like the thought process, TRS.
Soto I’d be all about. Catcher is a tough position to get offense out of, and Soto has shown the ability in the past to have vastly higher upside than Thole or the other scrubs we could see out there next year. I’d happily roll the dice on him.
Bourgeois looks interesting as a cost controlled alternative to Torres, who is terribler. And we all know the Mets need every dollar they can get to keep the lights on.
Stick
11/13/2012-1:44pm at 1:44 pm (UTC -4)
If Soto can do a good job behind the plate, any hitting will be gravy. some pop and nothing else would still be an upgrade!
darknova306
11/13/2012-1:50pm at 1:50 pm (UTC -4)
Thole’s entire game is complete garbage, so anything at all is an upgrade, sadly…
Stick
11/13/2012-1:53pm at 1:53 pm (UTC -4)
speaking of OFs, saw this on sportsline re: bay-
“Not only will Bay be paid the entire $21 million he is owed by the Mets, as has been reported, but the $15 million that is being deferred under the terms of the severance agreement is to be paid by the end of 2015, meaning the deferred monies will be paid only over an additional two years, CBSSports.com has learned.”
so not another Bobby Bo scenarios, just letting the mets spread the hit over a couple of years. Can’t hurt if it lets them get say 1 more player under the budget cap that is useful.
also noted that the Mets waived the usual minimum wage reimburesemnt. Not quite sure what that does, though I guess it means more money in bay’s pocket, if he does re-sign. Unless of course they both know he plans to retire!
In any case, good luck to him and I hope his brain is OK. retire, spend time with the kids. Just dno’t go to Philly or NYY and rebound to all-star levels, because that would really piss me off.
wanny
11/13/2012-3:10pm at 3:10 pm (UTC -4)
if that is the case then I think this is a lousy deal for the Mets. I’d rather take the hit this year and have all of his money off the books next year to spend on a real free agent.
Ceetar
11/13/2012-3:24pm at 3:24 pm (UTC -4)
yes, but the Mets actually want to compete this year, so it makes sense.
wanny
11/13/2012-3:30pm at 3:30 pm (UTC -4)
do you really believe that?
wanny
11/13/2012-4:48pm at 4:48 pm (UTC -4)
and how much better do you think they would get this year with even 7 or 8 million saved for this year?
if they were really worried about 2013 wouldn’t the better move be to defer over more years so that they could have a meaningful amount of money to save over the next few years to spend on a legitimate player?
It would have been infinitely better to eat it for this year and then have have him completely off the books next year. Now, they will be committing millions of dollars in each of the next three years to someone they don’t have — and won’t be able to spend the full amount on another player.
the motivation here was clearly to put a few million back into the pockets if the wilpons. no question. any other interpretation is being viewed through rose colored lens.
kingman 26
11/13/2012-5:45pm at 5:45 pm (UTC -4)
All I can say is that any realistic view of this simply screams that it was done out of financial desperation to save money right now.
Competing in 2013? Dream on. The team re-signed Nickeas, is apparently talking about bringing Torres back, they cannot afford Hairston, and Alderson is publicly joking about how bad his outfield is.
Trade Wright for as much as you can get, keep Dickey, and pray that Harvey and Wheeler are ready to be rotation anchors for 2014 and beyond.
MAYBE you can compete with a great rotation in 2014.
The Bay move is just another stone in the well-paved walk of Met misery which continues. They are paying him ALL of his money, and apparently will not even receive relief if someone else signs him for the minimum for 2013.
Because they are absolutely desperate for money now.
They are not thinking about competing–Fred is thinking about surviving, while Sandy lies to the fans and cracks jokes about the team to reporters.
The Mets we all love are truly among sports’ laughingstock franchises right now.
Ceetar
11/13/2012-2:51pm at 2:51 pm (UTC -4)
Soto’d be an okay backup righty I guess, but I have more faith in Thole having a good 2013 than Soto, especially in Citi Field. Thole’s OBP is much more likely to bounce back than Soto’s power, which will likely just be fly outs here. He’s spent his career in mostly hitter friendly places. His two best years were heavily reliant on BABIP.
wanny
11/13/2012-3:09pm at 3:09 pm (UTC -4)
Good thoughts, TRS, which unfortunately are also good examples of how far this team has fallen.
I seem to recall Bourg looking like Michael Bourne on the basepaths in one game against the Mets this year.
Reese
11/13/2012-3:09pm at 3:09 pm (UTC -4)
Soto makes $4.3 and is arb-eligible. If he’s non-tendered then maybe he’s in the mix on a minor league deal, but is he significantly better than the low-average/power-hitting Shoppach who’s coming off a $1.2 million season?
Q-Rod
11/13/2012-3:36pm at 3:36 pm (UTC -4)
Anyway, wouldn’t the Rangers want to keep Soto since it appears they are losing Napoli?
greggofboken
11/13/2012-4:04pm at 4:04 pm (UTC -4)
Given what they’re looking for Shoppach/Soto to do, I think he may be.
Shoppach vs. lefties: .267 BA / .868 OPS / 1 HR every 17 ABs / 1 K per 4.1 AB’s
Soto vs lefties: .295 BA / .891 OPS / 1 HR every 20 AB’s / 1 K every 4.4 AB’s.
Soto in general seems defensively stronger w/the exception of his caught stealing percentage (26% vs. Shoppach’S 29%)
He’s also two years younger than Shoppach. They have some of the same faults, but Soto’s seem a little less egregious than Shoppach’s. (I do love the way Shoppach handles himself around the plate.)
gategem
11/13/2012-4:17pm at 4:17 pm (UTC -4)
In 60 games in AAA last year Jason Bourgeois numbers in 247PAs were .243BA/.314OBP/ .324SLG. Too bad he can’t steal first.
Mr North Jersey
11/13/2012-6:22pm at 6:22 pm (UTC -4)
Something to watch as it develops.
@Ken_Rosenthal
Jose Reyes could – repeat, could – be part of this. Two shortstops – Escobar, Hechavarria – going from #BlueJays to #Marlins.
https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/268493167932866560
@Ken_Rosenthal
Inclusion of Reyes unconfirmed. What we know: Buerhle and Josh Johnson to #BlueJays. Escobar, Hechavarria to #Marlins. And more both ways.
https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/268493473236258817
TX
11/13/2012-6:26pm at 6:26 pm (UTC -4)
So much for my Dickey for d’Arnaud dream…
kingman 26
11/13/2012-7:09pm at 7:09 pm (UTC -4)
Wright and something for d’Arnaud and Lawrie??
They can re-create the 2006 Mets left side of the infield!
srt
11/13/2012-9:55pm at 9:55 pm (UTC -4)
Love these off season acquisitions and trade proposals you come up with. Always thinking outside the box.
I confess to not knowing too much about either one but since the Mets will apparently be ‘dumpster diving’, or ‘shopping in the frozen food section’ (and shut up Boras), these type of deals sound right up their alley.
On another note:
http://www.nj.com/mets/index.ssf/2012/11/mets_johan_santana_upbeat_jeff.html
‘Mets’ COO Jeff Wilpon preaches patience, Johan Santana says he’s healthy’
‘“He was using his left arm to give out packages,” said Jeff Wilpon, the Mets chief operating officer, after he and Santana passed out boxed lunches to Coney Island residents affected by Hurricane Sandy. “So he’s fine.”
*********************************
Can someone just put a muzzle on Jeff? Seriously, as far as we were told, Santana had no pain in that shoulder when they shut him down for the year – just ‘fatigue and stamina’ problems, as they described it.
With this Jeffey quote, it really makes it sound like it was much more serious than fatigue. So much so that now we’re supposed to be cheered by the fact that he used his left arm to hand out boxed lunches????